Kenya has committed to deploying an additional 600 police officers to Haiti in the coming weeks to help combat the gangs that control much of Port-au-Prince and its surrounding areas.
This increase will bring the total number of Kenyan officers, who have been gradually deployed since June, to 1,000.
During his visit to Haiti, President William Ruto expressed support for transforming the current Kenya-led security mission into a full United Nations peacekeeping operation.
Several other countries have also pledged to contribute a combined total of 1,900 troops to bolster the effort.
Despite ongoing violence in Haiti, a UN human rights expert has reported that gangs are expanding into new areas, leading to more displacement.
The UN Security Council is expected to meet by the end of the month to decide whether to extend Kenya’s current mandate for another year, with the possibility of establishing a full UN mission by 2025.
This would bring increased funding and resources, addressing the current mission’s struggle with insufficient equipment.
President Ruto, addressing the Kenyan police force in Port-au-Prince, praised their progress in recent months.
“Many believed Haiti was a mission impossible, but today they are rethinking that stance thanks to the progress you have achieved,” he said.
He assured the officers that they would prevail against the gangs and pledged to work on securing better equipment for them.
Currently, around 400 Kenyan officers are patrolling alongside Haitian forces to protect civilians and restore security.
Ruto stated that the next group of 600 officers is undergoing redeployment training and will be ready soon, pending the necessary support for their deployment.
However, there has been criticism in Haiti regarding the mission’s slow progress against the gangs.
UN human rights expert William O’Neil, who recently visited Haiti, said the mission was under-equipped, lacking essential resources such as helicopters, night vision equipment, and drones.
O’Neil noted that the Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS), authorized by the UN Security Council in October 2023, had only deployed a fraction of its planned force.
He emphasized that despite an international arms embargo, weapons and ammunition were still being smuggled into Haiti, allowing gangs to gain control over new territories.
During his visit to the southeast of the country, O’Neil observed that the police lacked the logistical and technical capabilities to fight the gangs effectively.
He quoted a police officer from Jérémie who described the situation as nearly impossible, adding, “We have to learn to walk on water.”
O’Neil also reported a sharp rise in sexual violence and that over 700,000 people have now been displaced by the violence.
He stressed that urgent action is needed, stating, “This enduring agony must end.
It’s a race against time.”
He called for increased efforts to stifle the gangs by fully equipping the MSS mission and implementing the UN Security Council’s sanctions and targeted arms embargo.
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